Bottle basket



June 23, 1942. E. PRATI ETAL BOTTLE BASKET Filed Nov. 19, 1 941 iiiiiiii III R S m H N n N AL mv WE. n [PP FA M 3 4 NI E B Patented June 23, 1942 UNITED STATES rarsurorrics BOTTLE BASKET Enrico Prati, Asti, and William 1?. Lass, Santa Cruz, Calif. I Application November 19, 1941, Serial-No. 419,664 r 6 Claims. (01. 215-12) This invention relates to bottle baskets, and particularly to the decorative and protectivetype of baskets commonly used on Chianti wine bottles.

The conventional "Chianti bottle basket is formed of a cord-like member made of straw which is wound about the bottle from its base upward to a point somewhat beyond its largest diameterf A straw base or footing is arranged beneath the bottle as apart of the basket and cords extend from the upper edge of the basket to be entwined around the bottle neck and also to form a carrying loop or handle.

The present invention has for its object the provision of a bottle basket similar in appearance to the conventional Chianti type bottle basket, but constructed of a materialand in a manner to minimize the labor and hand work in its construction.

A further object is toform a bottle basket of a plastic material such' as paper pulp and to make the basket in such a manner that it will fit the bottle snugly from its baseto a point above its largest diameter.

One form of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawingand described in detail in the following specification, wherein further of its objects and advantages are made apparent.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a bottle basket constructed in accordance with the present invention, and illustrating the manner in which a bottle is contained thereby;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged central transverse section of the basket illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a similar but smaller section of the same basket before application thereto of ribboss and cords which are applied for decoration and carrying purposes; and

Fig.4 is a plan view of the same basket with the ribbons in place thereon.

The bottle basket shown in the drawing comprises a body member In and a base H formed integrally therewith. The body and base are formed of inexpensive plastic material, such, for example, as paper pulp, which may be molded to the required shape, and the body member is preferably ribbed or corrugated, as illustrated, on its exterior surface, to resemble in appearance the straw of which the conventional Chianti type bottle baskets are made.

The interior of the body member in is made to conform in size and shape to the somewhat globular exterior of the lower portion of the bottle, which will therefore besnugly received within the basket,- and. the base ll is preferably formedwith a raised bottom, as 'indicatedat I2, to engage and supportthe base of the bottle;

It is customary, in the conventional straw basket, to have side bands of straw; usually-four in number, extending vertically from the-base-to the upper edge of the basket, which servein part to bind together the cord-like straw members which are wound around the basket. In the present invention, these bands of straw are represented by ribbon-like members 13- which may be formed of Cellophane or other durable'fiexible material, and which are preferably brightly colcred to correspond to the coloring of the straw bands used on the conventional basket:

The ribbons 13 serve not only to enhance the appearanceof the bottle'basket but each ribbon is also arranged to cover one of a plurality of slits I5 formed'in the upper portion of the basket at spaced intervals around the periphery of its upper edge; 'These slits extend from the upper edge of the basket downwardly to approximately the point of its'greatest interior diameter, to makethe upper portion .of the. basket flexible and make it possible to insert abottle which fits within the basket with its largest diameter somewhat below'the upper edges of the basket. The slits l5 are so arranged. that they permit a spreading'of the upper edge of thebasket upon insertion of the bottle, and. the natural resiliency of the material of which the basket is made tends to draw the slits to their normal closed position so that the basket fits snugly around the curved body of the bottle.

The ribbons l3, which are shown as four in number, around the exterior of the basket, are preferably formed of but two members, each one of which is threaded through the basket at points intermediate the body member ID and base I I, so that they cross each other within the basket and directly on top of the base, as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 4. Each piece of ribbon presents two ends, which are led up over the sides of the basket and over the top and down inside the basket to a point below the slit l5 which it covers and conceals. The ends of the ribbons are held in this position by staples, such as indicated at 16, and these staples are arranged below the lower ends of the slits l5 so that they serve both to hold the end of the ribbon in place and to reinforce the pulp of which the basket is formed at a point directly below the slit, thereby providing against any possibility of the slit being enlarged or extended if the bottle is carelessly inserted in the basket.

With the ribbon members l5 passing over the top edge of the basket in the manner just described, and held in place by the staples l6, they serve also as a means for securing to the upper edge of the basket a cord I! which is employed, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, to form a carrying loop for the basket and bottle, and which also has a portion entwined about the neck of the bottle to secure the basket in place on the bottle and to lend a decorative effect to the assembled article.

This type of bottle basket is exceedingly inexpensive to manufacture because its principal portion is made of paper pulp to which the ribbon and cord which decorate itvmay be easily and inexpensively applied. The ribbon maybe passed through the side walls of the basket intermediate the body and base members through the use of a fiat pointed needle-like tool with which the basket is pierced and through which the ribbon is threaded, this tool making perforations such as indicated at l8 in Fig. 3 at the same time that it is used to draw the ribbon into place.

When the body and base member of the basket are formed of paper pulp, they are preferably sprayed, dipped, or otherwise treated with a moisture resistant material, or a moisture resistant agent may be mixed with the pulp. The

entire assembly, when placed on the bottle, is very similar in appearance to the conventional Chianti type bottle baskets, and, although inexpensive to manufacture and apply to the bottles, is attractive in appearance and very durable.

Although some features of the invention have been more or less specifically described herein, it is to be understood that changes may be made in the materials as well as in the arrangement and construction of the several parts, within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A bottle basket formed of plastic material and shaped to fit a bottle having a substantially globular body member, said basket having slits formed in its upper edge to permit admission of the bottle to a point beyond its greatest diameter.

2. A bottle basket formed of plastic material and shaped to fit a bottle having a substantially globular body member, said basket having slits formed in its upper edge to permit admission of the bottle to a point beyond its greatest diameter, and ribbons arranged vertically over the extercior of the basket in position to conceal said sli s.

3. A bottle basket formed of plastic material and shaped to fit a bottle having a substantially globular body member, said basket having slits formed in its upper edge to permit admission of the bottle to a point beyond its greatest diameter, ribbons arranged vertically over the exterior of the basket in position to conceal said slits, and securing means retaining said ribbons in place and arranged adjacent the lower ends of said slits.

4. A bottle basket formed of plastic material and shaped to fit a bottle having a substantially globular body member, said basket having slits formed in its upper edge to permit admission of the bottle to a point beyond its greatest diameter, ribbons arranged vertically over the exterior of the basket in position to conceal said slits, and metal staples piercing said ribbons and the walls of the basket adjacent the lower ends of the slits to secure the ribbons in place and reinforce the basket.

5. A bottle basket comprising a body member and a base member formed integrally therewith, and decorative ribbons on the exterior of the body member, said ribbons comprising strips of material passed through the basket below the body member to cross the inside of the base member, and having opposite ends extending upwardly over the exterior of the body member, then over the top edges thereof, and terminating within the body member.

6. A bottle basket comprising a body member and a base member formed integrally therewith, decorative ribbons on the exterior of the body member, said ribbons comprising strips of material passed through the basket below the body member to cross the inside of the base member, and having opposite ends extending upwardly over the exterior of the body member, then over the top edges thereof, and terminating within the body member, and means passing through the body member and each ribbon member to secure the ribbon member both interiorly and exteriorly of the basket.

ENRICO PRATI. WILLIAM P, LASS. 

